Be My Daddy
by Rokugo
Summary: It took a car crash to end ten years of friendship between Sakuno and Tomoka. And it took a child, Chotarou to bring together two hearts. A new version of Rokugo And I've changed to Prologue, sorry minna
1. Prologue

**Be My Daddy**

**A/N: Okay, now minna-san! Rub your hands before you read this epilogue, releasing those Adrenaline hormones making your heart beat faster. And if your heart beats faster, your chance into getting heart diseases reduces rapidly. Cool, right?**

**In this story, I think I'll choose to be more mature in choosing words and I hope through my experiences, I hope to write better in fanfics and attract more readers to point out their opinion about my typing skills. Sorede, I hope you're one of those readers, so please sit back and enjoy.**

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**(Prologue)**

_She looked down upon the baby in her lap. The red-headed infant stared back at her, hazel eyes gleaming innocently into her brown ones. Yawning, he continued his sleep. 18 year-old Ryuzaki Sakuno smiled weakly to her seniors that came to pay their respects to the deceased. Kikumaru Eiji, her close senpai gently stroke the baby in her lap, his lips turned up into a faint smile._

_"Tomo's very lucky, ne?" He murmured at the red-head who stirred slightly at the sudden touch. Sakuno just nodded back._

_"Arigatou, Eiji-senpai. __Momo-chan, too." She stood up with the baby in her arms, bowing slightly as a gesture of respect before the seniors left the house._

_She slowly walked around the house, checking whether there would be more visitors, maybe Tomoka's ex to come by. But no one came after the clock showed ten. The rain was drizzling outside after 8 hours of downpour. _

_Sakuno's eyes caught glimpse of a picture frame nearby the windowsill. She walked towards it and picked up the frame with 17-year old Osakada Tomoka. Sakuno looked at the picture carefully._

_It was Tomoka, her bestfriend since childhood. The redhead was pregnant five months, she recalled. Three months before that, Saeki left Tomoka. His excuse was that he wanted to further his studies in Germany. _

_"Gomen, ne. Tell Tomoka that I'm sorry for her..," was what he said to her._

_It was clear that he couldn't face Tomoka, for he knew the baby was his. After a week he left, leaving Tomoka hoping that he would come back yet he didn't show up even when she was on labour. Sakuno hated Saeki, the guy who torn Tomoka's heart so many times when they were dating, going out with Tomoka just to prove his ex-girlfriend wrong. Tomoka had been admiring him, and he accepted her love just out of sympathy.  
_

_Without knowing it, tears blurred Sakuno's eyes._

_"That kind of guy..." She spat out hatefully._

_The frame was placed back as footsteps were heard. _

_"Sakuno, what's wrong?"_

_The said woman turned around to look at her grandmother. Ryuzaki Sumire smiled warmly at her, and gently caressed the baby's forehead._

"_It's now up to us to raise Tomoka's son as if he's our own. Ne?" Sumire searched Sakuno's brown eyes._

_Sakuno nodded, eyes filled with determination. She was going to raise Chotarou like her own child. She was going to care for the baby, to give him all the love he deserved from a mother. Sakuno looked out the window into the dark night. She lifted her head towards the shiny moon and swore upon Tomoka's soul to protect the child. _

_"Let's all work hard together, Ryuzaki Chotarou!"_

_

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_

**~Owari~**

**Hai, hai hai hai! Yosh chap one, Daiseko! Hope ya guys couldn't wait for the next chap. There's gonna be a whole lot more after this one. Ngee heee, I'm so curious to see the anticipation on your faces!**

**Anyways, hope ya guys review and give some ideas for me! Arigatou gozaimasu!**

**Oh, and for the record, all that Adrenaline stuff, I made it all up. Gomen!**

**This is Rokugo, signing off.**


	2. Otoko ni Naruya!

**Be My Daddy**

**Enjoy!**

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**Ch 1: Otoko ni Naruya! (Be a Man!)**

"Give back! No one can touch it!" Yelled a seven year-old redhead to a group of kids a couple of years older than him. Being ignored by the kids, Ryuzaki Choutaro head butted the boys yelling out, "DOOORYAA!!!"

"Ara, you missed, chibisuke!" A senior in his school teased while giving the smaller boy a hard push. "You're in my way, move!" another boy three years older than Choutaro kicked him aside.

The said boy glared at the three bullies who were trying out his rare racket that had a capital 'R' on the holder. "Give it back!" He cried out but was ignored. His eyes turned blurry as he sat on the cement court, his knees bruised and a scratch on his right elbow and chin. "Give...my racket... back..." His voice cracked, as the boys seemed to discuss about the price they were going to pawn the racket for.

"A thousand yen!" a brunet suggested. Immediately their raven-haired leader smacked him on the head. "Idiot, that's too cheap! How about fifty thousand?" He suggested while his finger traced the 'R' initial, "This Prince racket is really rare, right?" Choutaro inhaled deeply trying to hold his tears as the bullies were too engrossed in the conversation.

"What're you crying for?" Suddenly a deep voice asked, the owner of the voice appeared next to him, crouching and his head lowered to match Choutaro's level. The evening sun shone against the man's head, making his face shadowed by his white cap. Wiping off his watery eyes, Choutaro pointed towards the boys who were about to decide on a price for the racket.

"Racket..." The said man turned towards the kids. "That racket's yours?" When the smaller male nodded meekly, he stood up lowering his cap a little. "Bullies, eh?" He walked towards the group, patting a red racket on his broad shoulder.

"Fifty thousand, okay? Yosh, let's go!" The leader grinned gleefully at the rare racket in his hands. Just after a few steps, an adult's voice spoke up.

"Fifty thousand? That's quite something for a racket, right?" The boys froze in their tracks and turned around to face the unknown adult. "Woa!" the brunet one exclaimed as he turned around to see a tall man, with broad shoulders and a lean chest. His eyes were covered by the brim of his cap, his red racket patted on his shoulder. He looked very cool... And he looked very familiar to the kids.

"W-Wai-Wait... you're..." the leader stuttered as he saw the trademark white cap and red racket. The adult neared the raven-haired boy, then stopped leaving a distance of two feet between them. "You... Give the boy his racket back." He pointed towards the gaping Choutaro who was standing behind him. The leader glanced at his followers who were dumbfounded and were gaping inches wider than Choutaro. "O-Okay..." The ten year-old handed the racket to the adult with trembling hands.

"Hm..." mused the adult as he examined the red racket in his hand. "You guys should go, or the boy will press charges on you for bullying." The three bullies gasped and gave a quick bow before they scrambled away, tripping clumsily as they ran.

"Hey... mister..." Choutaro tugged on the adult's sleeve. The said man smacked the racket lightly on the boy's head. "You should've done something there." Choutaro frowned as he held tightly onto his precious racket. He slumped like a living zombie next to the adult on a bench.

"Chouta did something," he mumbled. The hero next to him raised a brow. Choutaro balled his fists and turned to the adult with determination in his eyes. "Chouta head butt them!" The man smirked, trying to suppress a giggle. "But..." The once energetic boy dropped his hands and stared at his bruised knees. "Chouta miss..."

"Na..." spoke up the adult, gaining Choutaro's attention. He turned to the little boy next to him, which looked quite familiar to him. "You like tennis?" The man asked, his eyes gazing at the now orange sky. Choutaro nodded, "'F'course. Mama plays too, and she's good at it... but she really trips very lot." The boy giggled as he remembered how funny his Mama looked like when she would be chasing for the balls if she hit them too hard.

The adult turned to Choutaro, a frown on his forehead. Tripping? Well, that reminded him of his ex. _'What was her name again? Um... Sakuma?' _He tilted his head when the name sounded wrong.

"Hey... boy."

**Naze namida afureru no****...  
****Kotoba de wa ienai toki**

**  
**The word 'boy' came out a bit slow as the man didn't know how to address a little kid. Choutaro turned to him, bits of laughter still there on his face.

**  
****Me no mae ni yume ga aru  
Mada daremo shiranai yume ga**

**  
**"You have to be a man." The mysterious adult said to him.

**  
****Tsuyoku ikinakute wa  
Ikenai yo ne**

**  
**Frowning, Choutaro asked, "A man?"

The man faced him, his real face seen clearly this time. His eyes were filled with determination all of a sudden.

**  
****Susumu beki michi wa jibun de**

"Be a man if you want to protect something precious to you."

**  
****Sou sa jibun no ishi de  
Kimereba ii**

He said out rather awkwardly. It was his first time having a real conversation with a kid, other than his niece and nephews. He grinned in his head, doing something good really felt good.

**  
****Aishiteru me wo sora shitari sezu ni  
Ieru you ni**

Somehow he felt that the boy was trying to protect the racket as if it was something precious to him. "Pu-re... precious? What's that?" Choutaro frowned as he heard the new word. Ryoma shook his head. "No, nothing."

**Wakiokoru Kono omoi  
Itsu no hi ni mo Boku wo sasaeru  
I realize, I feel dreams…**

Ryoma lifted his head to the skies. He remembered a certain somebody. Even though he hadn't seen her for eight long years, he still had the same feeling towards her. No, actually they met four years ago, but strangely he bumped into her at the grave.

_"Why are you here, Ryoma-kun?" _She asked, her eyes looked as if she had shed tears for quite a while. _"To see my grandparents..." _He answered, as toneless as ever. Their eyes met after four years of separation. After quite a long gaze, he mustered all his courage to ask back. _"You?" _He asked, wondering if Ryuzaki-sensei was the person who Sakuno was paying her respects to. Sakuno smiled bitterly, she shook her head as if she knew what Ryoma was thinking about._ "Someone... special..." _She said, avoiding his gaze. Then she just walked past him, without throwing even a glance at him.

After that, they never met. He regretted that time for letting her go, without uttering a word. Even till now, he knew he would fall in love with her again if he would see her again. Maybe this time, he would not make the same mistake as he did eight years ago. If he sees her again, that is.

"Ne, mister." Choutaro tapped the man's knee lightly. "What's your name?" The boy asked, curious to know the name of his savior, his hero that made the bullies scared out of their pants. The tennis-pro Mister that Choutaro assumed to be, blinked a second before he revealed his name.

.

"Echizen Ryoma." He answered.

.

It was then when reality struck Choutaro. The boy stood up, his eyes wide as saucepans, his mouth hung open like a cave and his body stood rigid. Ryoma blinked questioningly at the excited boy.

"You.... okay?" Ryoma asked, his voice unsure. Choutaro who realized his mouth was gaping nodded so quickly, that Ryoma presumed it had to be fifty nods per second.

.......................

...

......................

...

.......................

...

=w=

...

"COOL!" Choutaro suddenly yelled out loud, his hands punched the air. Ryoma tilted his head dumbly as the boy started giggling like a girl. "Stop that, you're a boy for god's sake." He mumbled.

"You're my hero! Gosh, Chouta so gonna tell Mama 'bout this!" The boy quickly packed his stuff and slung the oversized tennis bag on his shoulder. Waving to Ryoma, the boy disappeared from his sight into the small maze of streets in Yokohama.

Shrugging, Ryoma stood up and slung his tennis bag onto his broad shoulder.

He's finally back from the states, but just for three months.

.

_**Echizen Ryoma, Tennis-Pro Reported Missing Yesterday**_

Ryoma smirked as he remembered the headlines that morning. His manager was quite something, stirring up stories to cover him. The manager himself told him to take a vacation at Japan for a three month friendly practice with Tezuka.

But the problem is, he didn't have a place to stay for the three months. "What kind of manager he is, actually?" Mumbled Ryoma as he walked down the stairs of the park. However, he did manage to get a place to stay, well, that was what Ryuzaki-sensei promised him.

_"I guarantee you'll have a place to stay. But you should be prepared for what might come."_

_._

What was that, a warning?

.

Whatever it was, he was already heading to the said place. But he had a strange feeling about that place the moment he hung up from Ryuzaki-sensei.  
~

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**~Owari**

Song by **NewS,** entitled; **"Dreams"**

Yosh, finally! I had problems in this chap 'cos the contents vanished magically from this file and I had to spend two days or maybe more to recall the story. Whoosh! And lately I'll always accidentally press this $$$$ when I'm typing, so if I write "Oi, you," I'll accidentally type "Oi$, $ou$$$$" Maybe this means something. :3 Also, i couldn't upload the documents 'cos this site had reconstructions or so, so they gave out a notice stating that there would be some problems during the time. But hey, I still updated, ne?

Anyways, your reviews are what keeps me going, so please review!

**Rokugo, signing off. -.-**


	3. Pain

**Be My Daddy**

**Enjoy!**

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**Ch2: Pain**

"Mama, I'm back!" Ryuzaki Choutaro gave a peck on Ryuzaki Sakuno's cheek who was folding their laundry. "Hey, Choutaro. How was tennis?" She asked as she turned around to see her son. How wide her eyes opened as she saw the bruises on her one and only Choutaro. "Choutaro, what did you get yourself in to? Are you okay?" grinning goofily, Choutaro looked at Sakuno in her eyes. His hazel eyes glinting with excitement.

"Mama, you're not gonna believe what happened! Something happened!" He exclaimed as he jumped around excitedly. Sakuno chuckled as she saw how excited her son was. "What was that something that had to be hard to believe? UFOs?" She chuckled more at the end of her words. Choutaro shook his head vigorously and suprisingly he sandwiched his Mama's face between his two small hands.

"Chouta meet Echigoya Ryoma!"

Sakuno frowned at the name. "Echigoya?" Choutaro tilted his head when the name didn't sound right. "No, the man that save Chouta was... Echi? Echizen.... Ryoma?hmm... Yes! That's it, Echizen Ryoma! Chouta met Echizen Ryoma!" Choutaro exclaimed and suddenly leaped into Sakuno's embrace. "And he told Chouta to be a man! He was like, 'Otoko ni naruya', he was totally COOL!" the urchin of seven exclaimed as he mimicked Ryoma's words with a low-pitched voice which he failed miserably but continued to jump around anyway.

Sakuno froze.

_'Echizen... Ryoma? Ryoma-kun?' _Tears swelled up in her eyes after so many years. Choutaro stopped abruptly as he saw his Mama's eyes getting watery. "Ne, Mama? Why there is water in your eyes?" He asked, with the usual innocent grammar errors in his sentences.

"No, nothing. Um, Choutaro?" Sakuno stood up as she wiped her eyes with the hem of her sleeve. Choutaro wrapped his arms around Sakuno's waist, staring at her with his usual apologetic eyes. Sakuno smiled warmly as the boy blinked innocently at her. "Why don't you take a bath, okay?" The little boy nodded instantly and quickly scrambled upstairs.

Sakuno sighed heavily as she heard Choutaro's door being closed. "Ryoma-kun... he's back?" She murmured to herself as she sat on the couch. The telephone rang, making the 25 year-old jump suddenly. Sakuno sighed relieved as she picked up the receiver.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's obaa-chan." An old voice answered warmly.

"Um... what's the matter?" Sakuno tried to sound calm, like she always did.

"I was wondering... the house next to yours is empty, right?"

"Of course, I'm renting it. Why?" A relieved sigh was heard at the other end as Sakuno made the statement.

"Thank god. Well, somebody's renting it for three months. You okay with that?"

Sakuno's eyes shone as she heard her grandmother. Rent meant money to her. It'd been a while since people rented the two-storey house. Not that she wasn't capable of finding money, she's even a middle school teacher so she had money. But who doesn't like money, right?

"Of course, I'm okay with that. When is the person coming?"

"He's coming today. You've cleaned up the place, right?"

"I clean it every day!" Sakuno chuckled at the answer. She didn't know why she was acting all high, maybe it was because finally somebody would rent her house after quite a while.

"Well then, I'll be at your house around eight, okay?"

Sakuno stretched her arms as she hung up. "Three months, eh? I wonder..." She rolled up her sleeves and hurriedly brought the piles of fresh cleaned clothes upstairs into her bedroom. After a few minutes Sakuno tidied the living room, Choutaro quickly scrambled downstairs ready in his blue cotton pajamas. "Mama, Chouta ready and clean!" He hugged Sakuno from the back as he said so. The brown-haired woman yelped. "Hey, that was fast." She ruffled the boy's head lightly.

Suddenly the doorbell rang. "Chouta get it!" The boy scrambled like a cockroach to get the door. "WHOA!" He exclaimed. Sakuno frowned as the boy was rudely jumping about excitedly at the door. "Choutaro, behave yourself-Eh?"

Sakuno froze as she saw the person standing at the door.

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Ryuzaki Sumire rubbed her hands vigorously together as the spring breeze blew. "It's so cold out here." She complained as she blowed at her hands. Heavy steps were heard suddenly, catching her attention. Realizing who it was, Sumire waved her hands frantically at the person.

"Yo, Ryoma!" The said name lifted his head as he heard the familiar voice. He smirked at the sight of his former coach. "Ryuzaki-sensei is still the same." He answered with a toneless voice. Sumire patted his back as he stood by her side, coughing lightly at the unbelievably strong pat. "And you're still as cold as ever! I was just about to ring the doorbell." She said as she pressed a small button embedded in the wall next to the doorframe.

Light footsteps were heard before the door opened to reveal a familiar little boy who adressed Ryuzaki-sensei as "Sumi-chan!" Ryoma blinked his eyes as he saw the boy. "You..." He tilted his head at the boy. Choutaro who was hugging Sumire by the waist turned to Ryoma.

"WHOA!" The boy exclaimed, startling Ryoma with his high-pitched voice. Small hands pulled Ryoma's adult hands, urging him into his house. "C'mon, Chouta wanna show you to Mama!" Ryoma blinked, unsure what to do. He turned to Sumire, a frown forming on his forehead. The old woman stood by the door, chuckling by herself.

"Choutaro, behave yourself- Eh?"

**Dore dake aruite, kitan darou**

Ryuzaki Sakuno froze as she saw the familiar man by the door, Choutaro's small hands wrapped around his thumb, pulling him in.

**furimuitara namida no ato**

"Ryoma…kun…" His name came out in a whisper.

**kizutsuke kizutsuki **

The familiar hazel feline eyes, the same raven hair, the unchanged structure of his strong jawbone...

**tadoritsuita basho...**

She knew there and then, it was Ryoma.

**  
ima koko ni kimi ga iru...  
**

Brown eyes gazed into hazel feline eyes. Ryoma's lips immediately seemed hard to utter a word as he heard that warm voice of hers.

He missed that voice.

**ai nante**

_"Ryoma-kun, when are you leaving?" She asked through the phone. Ryoma took a deep breath as he twisted the doorknob. _

**kimi dake sa  
**

_"Today." He answered. He could hear her quiet tears._

**itsudemo motome sugite...  
**

_"Sakuno..." He said, finally getting her name right. _

**ai nante**

_"We'll meet again-" _

_"No." She cut in his words. _

**kimi nashi ja**

_She didn't want to be heartbroken again. If he said that they will meet again, she'll just love him again and be heartbroken again. _

**imi nai yo  
ikirarenai...  
**

_"From now on... let's just live our own lives... ne?" She said, her voice sounded calm. "Gomen, Ryoma-kun... to be saying such things..."_

_"I should apologize..." He said, his voice was deep and hoarse. _

**Aishitemo Aishikirenai**

_"Bye..." He murmured before he hesitantly hung up._

**Mirai nante kimi nashi ja**

**Mienai yo**

**Iranai yo...**

A bitter smile found its way to Sakuno's face.

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Sumire sighed again. She patted Ryoma's shoulder as she stood up. "I'm sorry, Ryoma. But my house is at Tokyo. And you have to stay here to practice with Tezuka." The tennis-pro shrugged. "It's okay, I'll figure a way."

"Take care. And I'm sorry, about Sakuno." The last words were mumbled. Ryoma heard it though, pretending to not hear.

Sighing, the unlucky tennis star laid down on the wooden floor of the steamhouse. Men wrapped half naked in towels walked by, not noticing the tennis star who was laying around in a corner, wondering of a place to stay.

He smirked. He was actually trying to keep his cool, from being rejected by Sakuno. He never thought that the so-called house owner had to be Sakuno. And when she saw him, she quickly changed her mind and then said that there was somebody using that house for a business trip. He should've seen that coming. "That old hag." He mumbled tonelessly. Being so confident about him having a place to stay and ended dumping him at a steamhouse.**  
**

Then a light bulb appeared in his head.

He suddenly got an idea. Quickly, his fingers dialed Tezuka's number.

"Hello, Tezuka here."

"It's me, Echizen."

There was a short silence before Tezuka spoke up.

"Ah, I tried calling you but I couldn't get through."

"What is it about?"

"You're staying with me next month, so don't worry about accommodations and stuff."

Ryoma frowned.

"Wait, did you say next month?"

"Echizen, you're in Japan... right?"

"Of course, why?"

"...."

"Tezuka?"

"I'm still in Germany, I'll not be back till next month."

Ryoma sweatdropped. The sound of Tezuka heaving a sigh was heard through the phone.

"So... I've got the wrong information, right?" Ryoma asked calmly.

"Sorry, Echizen." Tezuka apologized curtly and then hung up.

Ryoma scratched his head, searching for a solution. "I think I don't have a choice, eh?" Another set of numbers was dialed again. The receiver answered.

"Ah, Ryuzaki-sensei? This is Ryoma."

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Sakuno gently ran her hand through Choutaro's soft hair. With a gentle touch, she caressed his cheek and gave a peck. The sleeping toddler stirred a bit as she carefully stood up to switch off the lights.

"Goodnight, Choutaro." She whispered before carefully closing the door. Just as Sakuno turned around, there stood Sumire just behind her, a finger on her lips to tell the startled Sakuno to keep quiet. "Obaa-chan, you scared me!" Sakuno lightly tapped the older Ryuzaki's shoulder. "Let's go to the living room first." Sumire whispered to her granddaughter and led her downstairs.

"Ne, why're you here?" Sakuno urged Sumire as the old woman sat down on the couch next to somebody. "Ryoma-kun?" The dumbfounded woman stared at the now standing tennis player, slightly bowing politely at her. She didn't bat an eyelid.

"Obaa-chan..." Sakuno turned to her grandmother, a slight blush crept under her eyes as she noticed she stared at Ryoma unblinking. Sumire smiled and started massaging Sakuno's sagged shoulders gently. "Well, I gave Ryoma the wrong information, and he has no place to stay..." Sakuno's head shot up. "No way." She said firmly as she turned to Sumire. Ryoma gave an inaudible sigh. Crossing his fingers in his pockets, he prayed silently for Sakuno's approval. Maybe it'd seemed to be pathetic, but he had no choice, for now.

Sumire looked into Sakuno's eyes, searching for a suitable reason to let Ryoma stay in the house for quite a period. "Well, how should I put it..." Sumire mused as she looked over to Ryoma who had his eyes shielded underneath his raven bangs.

"It's okay." Suddenly a male voice spoke up.

The two Ryuzaki women turned to the man, brows slightly frowning. Sumire walked to Ryoma, steadily patted her hand on his shoulder. "Where will you stay?" She asked. Shrugging, Echizen Ryoma started to make a move to the door. "Somewhere." He said, a hint of pain in his husky voice.

No....

NoNoNo.

No way in hell...

Sakuno wasn't going to care for him again.

_'Let him go, Sakuno! For god's sake, he can find a place to stay somehow!'_

Sakuno sighed heavily.

"W-Wait." Sakuno quickly grabbed his calloused hand. Avoiding his eyes, she slightly stuttered out. "We-Well... I have another empty room, a master bedroom... since next door is already rented... I guess you don't have a choice but... but make sure..." She quickly snatched her hand back as she realized she was holding onto him. Blushing furiously, Sakuno looked away.

"Ill make sure he pays the rent, Sakuno." Sumire chuckled as she wrapped an arm around Sakuno's shoulders. "So, I'll leave him to you, 'kay?" Sakuno's head shot up. _'Leave him to me? That has such a deep meaning...' _She blushed harder at the thought.

"So... where is it?" Ryoma asked as he casually slung his bags on his shoulder. Sumire gave a peck on her granddaughter's cheek before she walked out of Sakuno's house. The air between the two ex-lovers stilled. Only the sound of the clock ticking ridiculously loud irritated both pairs of ears.

"Um... Here, follow me." She hesitantly led Ryoma upstairs as the blush faded. Silently the two walked upstairs, not uttering a word. Ryoma had the urge to ask her about Choutaro, but at that moment, he couldn't talk. He knew he couldn't talk normally in such a state where Sakuno was treating him like an outsider.

"Here, this door." Sakuno motioned towards a wooden door painted light blue. She gave a quick bow before she left Ryoma. Just when Ryoma started to twist the doorknob, he paused.

"About Choutaro..." He suddenly spoke up, freezing Sakuno in her tracks. Slowly, she turned around, her chest thumping very hard. Locking gazes with Sakuno's brown eyes, his lips bitterly turned up one-sided. "Is he... yours?" He asked, a hint of pang heard in his deep voice. He tried to control the way he sounded, not too disappointed, not too uncaring.

Sakuno looked away before she answered with a sad smile across her lips. "He's Tomoka's..." Ryoma's heart felt relieved for a split second, but then he asked. "Where is she?"

Tears welled up in her eyes. Why? Why on earth was she crying for? Why did she feel weak whenever he talked to her?

"Tomo's... gone..." She answered, her eyes hidden underneath her bangs, her small hands balled into fists. Hatred once again fueled in herself after eight long years of endurance.

The hazel eyes widened a fraction. What happened when he wasn't there? How was his friends doing? He wondered...

"How was everyone?" he asked, nearing the distance between them as he put down his bags. He reached out for Sakuno's hand uncertainly, to wipe off the single tear that ran down her facade.

**hirahira ochiru kono yuki no you ni  
kimi e no omoi furi tsumotte yuku  
**

"Saeki…" Sakuno spoke up, her voice trembling. "He dated Tomo-chan in high school… But it didn't last long though." Ryoma gazed at the woman in front him. He could've guessed what happened next. "And then?" He still asked.

**  
osoro no yubiwa nigirishimeru to  
kimi no nukumori ima demo mada aru you de  
**

"Underage pregnancy… her father said that when he threw Tomo-chan out." She snorted. "That man flew all the way to Germany and left Tomo-chan crying in her bed alone at nights. He wasn't even there when…" She stopped as her voice cracked again, her chest ached so much when she remembered the hard days Tomoka went through.

**hirahira ochiru ano yuki wo mou  
futari de mireru koto wa nai keredo**

"Saku..."Ryoma turned to her and gazed into her eyes. He brought his hand up and wiped off the tears streaming down Sakuno's face.

**  
aishi atta hibi wa mudajyanai kara  
kakegae no nai takara mono ni narun dayo**

"A few months after she gave birth to Chouta, she died…" She gently removed Ryoma's hand and moved a step backward. "Why didn't you tell me?" Ryoma asked in a whisper.

**  
moshimo negai ga kanau no naraba  
mou ichidou dake nante iwanai yo**

His heart hurt too, for Tomoka was his friend too, even though he never said it. Deep down he was very thankful to her for uniting him and Sakuno before.

**  
semete bokura ga meguriau mae ni  
**

"You never called, Ryoma-kun. I've waited…" She turned to him, a painful smile on her lips

**modoshite hoshii kitto konna itami wa nai kara**

"If I haven't met you, maybe all of this wouldn't have happened, right?" She said before she turned around and disappeared into her bedroom.

Ryoma took a glance at the door opposite of him. "Sorry, you two." He finally said before he closed the door.

* * *

**~Owari**

Song by **Tegoshi Yuya, Nishikido Ryo and Kato Shige**; entitled – **Pain.**

Woohoo! Go Roku! Finally! I finished this chap, I just got stuck with homework and schoolwork and my water-rocket project. Well, the rocket isn't official yet but it still needed some painstaking research, yah! Now, moving on to the subject. This chappie is supposed to be the beginning of the rising feelings between Sakuno and Ryoma (Wohooo... what does that mean, ne?). I hope this chap isn't that heavy, or too choppy (whatever that means ~). So don't be shy and please review!(in a good way, that is)

Rokugo, Signing off. .-


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